A former UBC student and football player who was aggressively arrested and beat by Transit Police is speaking out after a video of the incident went public.
Transit Police Cst. Edgardo Diaz Rodriguez struck the then 22-year-old victim with a baton 10 times in 2011, striking his neck, head, and back, all because of an alleged fare evasion.
The attack occurred on August 10, 2011 at the Rupert Street SkyTrain Station when the victim, who wishes to remain anonymous, was waiting for a friend. When he went to leave the station, he was confronted by two Transit Police over an unpaid fare and ticketed. After officers didn’t believe the name he had given them, they arrested him for obstruction.
When he tried to run away, Diaz Rodriguez delivered 10 blows with a baton to the victim.
READ MORE: Video of assault on a UBC student by a transit officer released
“It was traumatizing. It still sticks with me,” the victim told Global News.
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The victim, who is half-black, says he believes he was racially profiled by police.
“If it had been another person, would this event had gone this far? Would they have wanted to approach me? With all this going on in America right now, it’s all just coming to a head.”
The victim says he had never been arrested before and did not know his rights.
During the attack, he says his fight-or-flight response kicked in and he tried to get away.
“I just knew I could be killed. I literally thought that. I thought I was going to get beaten to death, like a Rodney King incident or something like that.”
He says his fight ended when he lost consciousness and rolled down the stairs. He’s thankful he didn’t suffer brain injuries aside from a three-inch sized scar on his head.
READ MORE: Calgary police respond to video circulating online of arrest caught on camera
READ MORE: Transit Police apologize for recording over surveillance footage of alleged groping
Diaz Rodriguez was charged with assault causing bodily harm and pleaded guilty in May, and last month was handed a 12-month probation. He remains on the job with pay doing administrative duties.
That’s something the victim just can’t believe.
“The fact that he’s still employed, like what business wouldn’t fire an employee for swinging a baton this many times at anybody? It’s very tough to see.”
The victim, meanwhile, says he was too injured to take part in a UBC football team tryout two weeks later and missed out on the opportunity to continue his career, which included CFL dreams.
“It kind of changed my life. It’s an emotional pain that just continues to go on.”
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